Ray County Missouri Biographies

Francis, John W. John W. Francis was born in Madison county, Ohio, on the 14th day of May, 1842. His father, Alexander B. Francis, was born in the same county and state, on the 28th day of January, 1817. His mother's name, before marriage, was Virginia A. Elsey. She was born in Virginia on the 9th of January, 1823, and was the eldest of a family of seven children. His parents were married on the 1st of August, 1841, and three years afterward in the spring of 1844, the year of the great overflow of the Missouri river, emigrated to the state of Missouri. They traveled mainly by steamboat in seeking their new home in the west. They landed first at Booneville, Missouri, but remained there only a short time, selecting, after a few weeks, Sugar Tree township, Carroll county, for their new home. His occupation here was farming, until the death of his mother in April, 1854, where he lived for a short time in the family of Wilson Malone, and with his aunt Betsey Francis. His father marrying Margaret Colley, in 1855, he returned home and lived with his father until the death of his father's second wife. His father then sent him to live with John F. Dale, four miles northwest of Richmond, where he remained until his father married the third time, July 14, 1857, uniting his fortunes this time with Mary A. Proffitt. His father, about this time, purchased a small farm, seven miles north of Richmond, and lived on it until his death, which took place July 11, 1862. Before his father's death, a few months, he enlisted in the United States service, volunteering as a private in company K, 23d Missouri volunteers, for the term of three years from the 22d day of December, 1861. This regiment was then stationed at Grand River Bridge, one mile east of Utica, and shortly afterward went into winter quarters at Chillicothe, Missouri. On or about the 1st of March, 1862, his regiment was ordered to Benton Barracks, St. Louis, and after some thorough drilling, it was ordered to Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee. It left St. Louis by steamboat, on the first day of April, 1862, and succeeded in reaching its point of destination, Saturday, April 5, 1862, in time to participate in the great battle of Pittsburg Landing, on the 6th and 7th of April, 1862. His regiment was in General B.M. Prentiss' brigade, in the battle, and suffered terribly, having been greatly exposed in the hottest part of the engagement. His company (company K) was fearfully depleted. Out of eighty men in this company that went into action, only fifteen answered at roll call at the close of the battle, the remainder being killed, wounded or taken prisoners. In fact, the entire regiment had met with such a heavy loss, that it was sent back to Alton Illinois, to recruit. The brave colonel of the regiment, Colonel Jacob T. Tindall, was killed on the first day of the battle, April 6, 1862. Mr. Francis received a wound in this battle, and was sent back to hospital in St. Louis, to receive surgical treatment. After recovering from his wound he rejoined his regiment, which had partly filled up its thinned ranks with new recruits, and in 1863 took up its line of march to McMinnville, Tennessee; thence to the front at Chattanooga, Tennessee, and took part in all the battles and skirmishes from there to Atlanta, Georgia. The prominent battles in which he was, were Mission Ridge, Resaca, Georgia; Ringgold, Georgia; Allatoona, Georgia; Kenesaw Mountains, Georgia; and in the siege of Atlanta. When his regiment arrived at Atlanta, it was assigned to the first brigade, third division, fourteenth army corps, army of the Cumberland. After the capture of Atlanta, he was in the memorable march after the Confederate General Hood and his army, when he went back to Franklin, Tennessee. On the Coosa river, near Rome, Georgia, General Sherman divided his army, and sent the fourth and twentieth corps to oppose General Hood and the remainder of the army concentrated at Kingston, Georgia, and severed communication with the world. He was one of the grand army that marched with Sherman to the sea, and was one of the boys in blue, in that celebrated march, and took part in all the movements of the victorious columns that General Grant characterized as prompt, skillful and brilliant. He was discharged in 1865, at Hilton Head, South Carolina, and took passage on the ocean steamer Fulton, for New York City, thence by railroad to Ray county, Missouri. On reaching home he found his father and brother were both dead, and the other members of the family living at different places. He turned his attention to farming for a short time after he came home. In the spring of 1865, a regiment of Missouri militia was organized in Ray county, and he was elected captain of one of the companies, (company D), and duly commissioned by Thomas C. Fletcher, governor of Missouri, on the 5th day of May, 1865. In October, 1865, he went to Lawrence, Kansas, and hired to a freighting firm to drive a team of oxen across the plains to Fort Union, New Mexico, and was caught in a severe storm on the Cimarron, in New Mexico, and lost over three hundred head of oxen by freezing and starving to death. In the spring of the year following, he went on to Fort Union and Las Vegas, delivered over freight, and returned to Ray county in the summer of 1866. After the Richmond bank robbery, May 23, 1867, when John Shaw, mayor of Richmond, F.S. Griffin, deputy sheriff, and Benjamin G. Griffin, his father, were killed by the bank robbers, he was appointed deputy sheriff by Mr. A.K. Reyburn, who was then sheriff of Ray county. He acted as his deputy until his term of office expired. In November, 1868, he was elected sheriff and collector of Ray county, on the Republican ticket. On August 24, 1869, he married Amelia J. Reyburn, then seventeen years old, and eldest daughter of A.K. Reyburn, ex-sheriff of Ray county. The issue of the marriage has been two boys: Harry and Willie. The latter one, Willie, died January, 1874. In November, 1870, he was re-elected sheriff by a larger majority than any one on the ticket, running ahead of the party vote. He was also elected one term to the city council, and one term, marshal of the city of Richmond, from April, 1870, to April, 1871. After the expiration of his term as sheriff and collector of ray county, he went to Colorado and remained there about one year, then returned to Richmond, and shortly afterward moved to Hardin, Ray county, and was appointed by the board of trustees, marshal and collector, and served one term. He then moved back to Richmond. During his official career as sheriff, he discharged the duties of his office with marked ability. He pursued and captured many criminals and fugitives from justice. Among the most noted ones were, James Devvers, whom he captured in Madison county, Kentucky, the reward being $1100. James Devvers was one of the bank robbers in Richmond, May 23, 1867. Another was William McDow, who killed Ben Houston near Knoxville, Missouri. He was caught at Lone Jack, Missouri, reward being $500. He also captured Abe Lee, who had killed his man in Mandeville, Carroll county, Missouri. In April, 1877, he was appointed as postal clerk in the railway mail service by Postmaster General D.M. Key, a position which he now holds. He moved to the city of St. Louis at the time he was appointed, and still resides there. He was at one time a stockholder in the Ray County Savings Bank, and a director of the Ray County Agricultural Association. By his energy and close attention to business and the duties of his office, he acquired a large amount of property. He at one time owned the fine brick mansion east of Richmond, and four hundred acres of land near and adjoining the city. In the great financial crash of 1873, that involved so many men of capitol and business talent, he lost the great bulk of the fortune he had amassed. His great energy and capacity for whatever he turns his attention to, are rapidly elevating him to a high position in the prominent circles of business men of the country. His career, so far, is a fine example of what pluck and perseverance will do in overcoming all the unfavorable surroundings and obstacles of early life. 1881 History of Ray County, Missouri Pages 581 - 583